No school board race to be held for North Callaway

Incumbent members file unopposed

With incumbent board members Dan McMurtry and Jenny Bondurant running unopposed, there will be no April election for the North Callaway School Board.

Dan McMurtry

Jenny Bondurant

Both McMurtry and Bondurant said they are looking forward to another three-year term on the school district’s governing body.

McMurtry, who is just finishing a second term on the board that included a stint as president, said he wanted to serve again because he wants to help carry on the success the district has seen over the past several years.

“I’m biased, but I think we have a good thing going in North Callaway and I want to continue that,” McMurtry said. “I would say I try to be engaged in school business, and I think my values mirror the community.”

McMurtry, who works as a wildlife biologist with the US Department of Agriculture, has four children who have attended North Callaway schools.

In regards to his previous work with the board, McMurtry said he is particularly pleased with the their hiring decisions during his most recent term.

“I truly feel we have some of the best administrators anywhere. I can’t stress this enough: We have hired very good administrators, and it goes from the top down,” McMurtry said. “We’ve hired a good superintendent who has hired good administrators and teachers.”

He also made special note of the improved relationship between the school board and its patrons.

“I think the public has really embraced our recent decisions,” McMurtry said. “That’s what I’m most proud of, that the community has supported the school as much as it has in the past four or five years.”

Bondurant, who is preparing to start her second term with the board, said she is looking forward to getting more settled in district business.

“Once I got on, I realized how much there is to learn about our school system and how our district works,” Bondurant said. “I’m glad to be serving again. I want to find out from our patrons and students and staff what we need to do next, and I want to make sure I’m around to help.”

The editor of Jefferson City Magazine and founder of the Auxvasse Creative Arts Program, Bondurant has three children in the district.